New Orleans' National WWII Museum prepares to expand but post-Katrina attendance plummets

NEW ORLEANS -- A third contract has been awarded in the $300-million expansion of the National World War II Museum.

Bridge City-based Concrete Busters of Louisiana Inc. will soon begin the $481,827 demolition of the property bordered by Magazine Street, Andrew Higgins Boulevard and Camp and Calliope streets to make way for buildings that will quadruple the facility’s size in the next five years.

The facilities featuring battlefields and military services of World War II and a national center for war research are expected to attract about 700,000 visitors annually, compared with the 260,000 average pre-Katrina, said Clem Goldberger, senior director of marketing.

“Since Katrina, we have only been at about 50 percent of that,” she said.